Christmas came in February for the Children’s Home of the Immaculate Heart of Mary as about 20 members of the U.S. and Philippine military brought smiles and gifts with them Feb. 26.

Located outside Clark Air Base, the home is for abandoned girls 6 to 16.

The servicemembers, participating in exercise Balikatan 2006, were greeted with songs of hope and welcoming.

“To hear those songs sung by those kids, who don’t have much, is amazing to say the least,” said Chaplain (Capt.) Martin Adamson, 36th Air Base Wing, Anderson Air Force Base, Guam.

After the formal portion of the event, the children, with volleyballs, a soccer ball and Frisbees in tow, took their visitors to the yard to run, jump and play.

“The children always remember these visits,” said Sister Merly Laxa of the children’s home. “They ask when the military members are coming back.”

When the games came to an end, everyone filed back into the main building, where the servicemembers handed out toys along with candy to each child.

“All the items were brought down by (Airmen) from Yokota and the Marines,” the chaplain said. “Hopefully we provided something positive for the children and allowed our members to experience something different.”

As the military members prepared to leave, they went around the room shaking hands, receiving a hearty “Thank you” from every child.

In a home where every child had been abandoned, a friendly smile along with time and energy spent bonding meant a lot to all the parties involved.

“For a few hours we brought them some hope and joy,” said Capt. Tiaundra Sorrell, from the 36th Air Base Wing at Anderson AFB.

The visit was the first in several planned by the chaplain. Later in the week, the chaplain and other military volunteers will take desks, blackboards and other supplies bought with money donated by servicemembers to an area school.